Tobacco feed for making dense-end cigarettes



July 31, 1934. c. ARELT TOBACCO FEED FOR MAKING DENSE END CIGARETTES- Filed June 15, 1933 IVEN R k1 @i 0C TTORNEY Patented `uly 31, 1934 .UNITED STA TOBACCO FEED FOR MAKING DENSE-END CIGARETTES Charles Arelt, Brooklyn, N. Y., assgnor to f American Machine & Foundry Company, a corporation of New Jersey v Application June 13, 1933, Serial No. 675,633

11 Claims.

This invention relates to continuous-rod cigarette machines, its main object being to provide an additional tobacco feed for making dense-end cigarettes.

The cigarette-rod produced by ordinary continuous-rod cigarette machines has a substantially uniform tobacco density throughout its length, so that, owing to tobacco losses in cutting the rod, in collecting the cut cigarettes and 16 in assembling the same for packaging, the ends of the cigarettes become more or less hollowed out. To overcome this trouble, it has been found expedient to make the rod with dense spots a cigarette length apart, thereby providing surplus filler material at the ends of the cut cigarettes to make up for all losses.

For the purpose of producing such regularly recurring dense spots in the cigarette rod, the present inventionprovides a small self-contained 20 auxiliary tobacco-feed having a pocketed delivery roller so timed with therod-propelling tapebelt that measured quantities of tobacco are delivered by it the desired distance apart onto the moving paper strip before the latter is closed up in the rod-forming mechanism. 'Ihis additional tobacco feed is so arranged that it may be attached to an existing cigarette machine at either end of the main tobacco feed, preferably being placed, if space permits, between theA main tobacco feed and the rod-former, the additional dense-end tobacco in the latter case being added to the existing uniform main ller layer, or, the main layer may be deposited over the spaced tobacco heaps previously fed onto the paper strip.y m

Among the novel features ,ofv thefauxiliary to-V bacco yfeed ,herein described are itsl revolvable side-walls and the A,mountingof its refuser `drum the latter `*being so. :arranged 'that its periphery passes through the center ofy ,revolutiony of thel -saidIrotary nside walls thereby causing the .entireV "tobacco mass containedubetween the revolving. side walls to be thrownvinto rotary 4incision which advances :the.. s ame toacarde'dfee'd drum 'placed with itsperiphery below ,the'center'bfjthe side.'

, Iwa1ls,- the refusen drum thenhal'soaetingfgas a` A compressor, forV the y.,fe'ed, by, pushing ,the Y, intofth Ar'iinsbftheE oncoming tobacco backward the feed drum and the picker roller, which Vde-A termines the length of layer stripped oi the feed drum by one group of picker pins. The tobacco mass so measured is carried by the picker pins to a small receptacle provided for this purpose in the housing of the tobacco feed, from which receptacle the pocketed delivery roller above referred to scoops it up and deposits it onto the cigarette wrapper strip passing below it. The surface speed of the delivery roller is timed to be equal to the linear speed of the cigarette ro'd, so that no disturbing effect on the main tobacco layer is produced by the impact of the dense-end tobacco. In order to feed the extra tobacco at the proper space intervals, the delivery roller as well as the picker drum supplying the same are driven from the shaft of the tape wheel which propels the cigarette rod through the machine. u

When building this device into a new machine, the auxiliary tobacco feed may be dispensed with by deflecting a portion of the stream of already shredded tobacco from the chute of the main feed to a separate receptacle from which a pocketed delivery roller is made to serve measured quantities to the cigarette-rod as before, the said tobacco chute in this case being provided with a movable partition `near its end so that the width of the deflected stream portion can bev adjusted to deliver the exact amount of tobacco to each pocket of the deliveryrroller. With these and other objects not specifically mentioned in view, the invention consists in certain constructions and combinations hereinafter fully described and then specifically set forth in the` claims hereunto appended. f

In the accompanying drawing which forms a part of this specification, and in which like characters of reference indicate thev same orlike parts.' n

Fig. 1 is'asectional end elevation o f `a portion 95 o flt'ljie ixnproyedfcigarette machine, asseen from 1ine1 1 ofFig.2: Q Y. j' l ',Q

Fig. 2 is a. sectional side elevation of the same', taken,on line-22.of Fig.l 1;.and

`fg. *2a is a side 'elevation .offa detail ofthe deg 4100 v'ice;g iisg is; a sectiai plan Alkview ujf the auxiliary Y' tobaccoie'edon line`3-3of'Fig. 1.,',j

In carrying thelinventinito effectthevrlis.; provided means', p .for continuously' forwarding ai' v105 Slfmfoibbcw! mchnsml Operating '.Qlliljf a continuous. streanifof 'tobaccojand de j' liyer. 'separate 'Qnianti,tie.sf44 of tobacco; in predeter--r ed relation; 0,1.11' Saiimearis. and .a rod.

for,

echanism' forfoldingf a Wrapper aboutllO the stream of tobacco to form a cigarette rod having spaced relatively dense portions, whereby the cigarette rod may be severed through said relatively dense portions to produce cigarettes having relatively dense ends. In the best forms of construction contemplated said mechanism includes a main tobacco feed operating to form the continuous uniform stream of tobacco on said means, and an auxiliary tobacco feed for delivering the separate quantities of tobacco in predetermined spaced relation on said means. These various means and parts may be widely varied in construction for the particular device selected to illustrate the invention is but one of many possible concrete embodiments of the same. The invention, therefore, is not to be restricted to the specific construction shown and described.

Referring to the drawing, P is the cigarette rod Wrapper strip upon which a uniform stream of tobacco T is formed by the feed chute 4 of the main tobacco feed 5, which is of well known construction, in a trough formed by a support bar 6 and by side bars 7 mounted thereon, said trough being supported by the table 8 of the cigarette machine. The wrapper P rests on and is propelled through the rod forming mechanism, which will now be described, by an endless tape belt 9 running from a pulley 10 on a shaft 11 into the channel of a bar 12 adjoining the trough. Side bars 13 mounted on bar 12 hold between them the rod former tube 14 into which the wrapper P with its tobacco layer T is guided by a rod former tongue 15 inserted between the bars 7, and from which it emerges in the form of a continuous cigarette rod, ready to be sealed and finally cut into individual cigarettes.

Before the wrapper P advances under the tongue 1'5, it receives, at cigarette-length intervals, measured tobacco quantities T which are pressed down into the original tobacco layer T in the rod forming mechanism, thereby forming dense spots or portions D in the rod at which the latter is afterwards cut, thus producing denseend cigarettes.

The auxiliary tobacco-feed for supplying the dense-end tobacco T consists of a narrow chamber formed by a housing 16 supported by a stand 17, in a bearing of which is mounted a shaft 18 driven from the main feed 5 or from some other part of the cigarette machine, or from an independent source. The shaft 18 carries a spur gear 19 to which is attached a disk 20 forming one of the side walls of housing 16. The gear 19- meshes with a gear 21 mounted on a shaft 22 in stand 17, the shaft 22 carrying also a gear 23 meshing with a gear 24 on a shaft 25 mounted concentrically with shaft.18 in a bearing of stand.v

17. To gear 24 is fastened a disk 26 forming the other side wall of housing 16. The revolving side walls20 and 26 feed the tobacco T to the carded feed drum 27 mounted between the gears 21 and 23 on shaft 22.

On a stud 28, mounted between the revolving disks 20 and 26, on an inward extension of an arm`29. of bearing stand 17, turns a gear 30 to which is fastened a carded drum 31, the periphery of which passes through the center of revolution of the disks 20 and 26 and is tangential to the pins of drum 27, thereby acting as the refuser drum of the latter. By this arrangement of the drum 31, the revolving tobacco-mass T' between the disks 20 and 26 is prevented from forming a dead pocket at the center of revolution and at the same time is compacted into the pin spaces of feed drum 27 by the opposite rotation of the tobacco mass and the refuser drum at the point of contact between the latter and the feed drum.

The gear 30 is driven by a pinion 32 mounted on a shaft 33 carried by arm 29, the latter shaft having a gear 34 driven through an intermediate gear 35 by a gear 36 mounted on shaft 18, the intermediate gear 35 turning on a stud 37 carried by a bracket 38 supported by shafts 18 and 33.

A bar 39 attached to stand 17 carries a resilient comb 40 extending tangentially against the body of drum 27 between its circumferential rows of pins and serving to hold back its tobacco layer against the pull exerted on it by the action of thev refuser drum 31.

The picker roller 41 having one or more groups of picker pins equally spaced on its periphery strips measured quantities of tobacco T' from drum 27 and carries them to a receptacle 42 provided in housing 16, from which receptacle each individual tobacco quantity T drops into one of the pockets of a rotating roller 43, the circumference of which forms the bottom of receptacle 42. Upon reaching a half turn after receiving each charge, the pocketed roller 43 delivers the same upon the moving wrapper P passing below it, the housing 16 at the bottom of roller 43 havlng an opening of the proper size so as to limit the longitudinal spread of the charge to the desired amount. Picker roller 41 is driven at such a speed that a length of tobacco layer yielding eX- actly the tobacco-quantity required for one dense spot is stripped olf drum 27 by the passage of each group of picker-pins, and that the time intervals between the pickings are equal to those between the passage of successive pockets of the delivery roller 43, the latter in turn being timed to correspond with one cigarette length advance of the belt 9. The circumferential speed of delivery roller 43 is' made equal to the linear velocity of belt 9 so that there is no relative motion between the main tobacco layer T and the added tobacco quantity T' upon the delivery of the latter. ,Y

'Ihe picker roller 41 is mounted on a shaft 44 supported by arms extending from stand 17, the shaft 44 having a bevel gear 45 meshing with a bevel gear 46 on a shaft 47 supported by a bracket on one of ,the arms carrying shaft 44. Shaft 47 is driven by a sprocket 48 connected by a chain 49 with a sprocket 50 on a shaft 51 journaled in bearings 52 and 53 on table 8. The shaft 51 is driven by a sprocket 54 actuated by a chain 55 from a sprocket 56 on tape-wheel shaft 11 which is supported by a bearing 57 attached to table 8 and connected with the main drive of the cigarette machine. Shaft 51 carries a gear 58 meshing with a gear 59 on shaft 60 which is supported by a bearing 61 on table 8 and carries the delivery roller 43. Thus, the measuring roller 41 as well as the delivery roller 43 are synchronized with the tape-wheel 10 which in turn, through the main drive of the machine, is driven in timed relation with the cut-off which cuts through the dense portions of the cirgarette-rod to sever it into individual cigarettes.

As shownin Fig. 2a, the cigarette rod cutofl.' which in this instance is of the oblique rotary type such as disclosed in U. S. Letters Patent to Rundell Number 1,888,774 is provided with a ledger plate 62 vand an eccentric wafer blade 63 mounted for rotation oblique to the cigarette rod on a shaft 64. The shaft 64 is driven through drive members 65, 66, 67, 68 and 69 from a gear 70 on a drive shaft 'I1 which also carries the tape wheel supporting tape belt 9, so that the rod is forwarded in timed relatien to the operation of the cutoff. This shaft '71 is suitably geared for operation intimed relation thereto to the same drive shaft as the shaft 11 from which the auxiliary feed is driven. 'Ihus the operation of the auxiliary feed, the forwarding belt and the cutoif knife is timed to cause the knife to cut through the center of the dense portions of the rod to produce dense end cigarettes.

What is claimed is:

l. The combination with a cigarette rod forming and cutting mechanism, of means for intermittently adding tobacco to the rod at intervals timed to cause the cutting mechanism to sever the rod in the middle of the added portions to produce dense end cigarettes.

2. The combination with a cigarette rod forming and cutting mechanism, of means for intermittently adding tobacco to the rod at intervals timed to cause the cutting mechanism to sever the rod in the middle of the added portions to produce dense end cigarettes, said means including a carded feed drum for feeding tobacco from a mass, means for removing the tobacco from said feed drum and means for intermittently depositing the removed tobacco in the range of action' of said rod forming mechanism.

3. 'I'he combination with a cigarette rod forming and cutting mechanism, of means for intermittently adding tobacco to the rod at intervals timed to cause the cutting mechanism to sever the rod in the middle of the added portions to produce dense end cigarettes, said means including devices for feeding tobacco from a mass and a rotatable wheel having pockets about its periphery for receiving tobacco from said device and intermittently depositing it in the range of action of said rod forming mechanism.

4. The combination with a cigarette rod forming and cutting mechanism, of means for intermittently adding tobacco to the rod at intervals timed to cause the cutting mechanism to sever the rod in the middle of the added portions to produce dense end cigarettes, said means including devices for feeding tobacco from a mass and a rotatable wheel having pockets about its periphery for receiving tobacco from said device and intermittently depositing it in the range of action of said rod forming mechanism, and means for caus ing said wheel to rotate with the lower portion of its periphery travelling in the direction of movement of the rod.

5. The combination witlra cigarette rod forming and cutting mechanism, of means for intermittently adding tobacco to the rod at intervals timed to cause the cutting mechanism to sever the rod in the middle of the added portions to produce dense end cigarettes, said means including devices for feeding tobacco from a mass and a rotatable wheel having pockets about its periphery for receiving tobacco from said device and intermittently depositing it in the range of action of said rod forming mechanism, and. a casing surrounding said wheel to retain the tobacco in said pockets having an opening below the wheel to permit depositing thereof.

6. In a tobacco feed for cigarette machines, the combination with a hopper for holding a mass of tobacco, said hopper having opposite side walls rotatable to tumble the mass, of a carded feed drum extending between said walls for feeding tobacco from said mass, and means for picking tobacco from said drum.

7. In a tobacco feed for cigarette machines, the combination with a hopper for holding a mass of tobacco, said hopper having opposite side walls rotatable to tumble the mass, of a feed drum extending between said walls for feeding tobacco from said mass, and means for removing tobacco from said drum, the circumference of said feed drum extending substantially to the axis of said side walls.

8. In a continuous rod cigarette machine having means for forwarding a continuous stream of tobacco for forming the rod, the combination with a source of supply of tobacco, of a carded feed drum arranged to receive tobacco from said supply, and means for removing tobacco from said drum and intermittently delivering tobacco portions to said stream to form successive dense portions in the cigarette rod.

9. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with means for forwarding a continuous stream of tobacco for forming the rod, of a source of supply of tobacco, a carded feed drum arranged to receive tobacco from said supply, means coacting with said drum and said forwarding means to deposit spaced tobacco portions on the forwarding means for forming successive dense portions in the cigarette rod, and rod cutting mechanism for cutting the rod through the dense portions to form dense end cigarettes.

10. In a. continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with means for forwarding a continuous stream of tobacco for forming the rod, of a source of supply of tobacco, a carded feed drum arranged to receive tobacco from said sup-- ply, and means coacting with said drum and said forwarding means to deposit extra quantities of tobacco at spaced positions along said forwarding means for forming successive dense portions in the cigarette rod.

11. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, having means for forwarding a continuous stream of tobacco for forming the rod, the combination with a hopper, of means for feeding tobacco from said hopper to said forwarding means including devices coacting therewith to provide extra quantities of tobacco at spaced positions along said forwarding means for forming successive; dense portions in said rod, and rod cutting means timed to cut the rod through said dense portions to form dense endcigarettes.

CHARLES ARELT. 

